Here’s another extra large portion of PBM news
’n’ views. This month Brendon Kavanagh gets wind of the next PBM
convention, samples some Arcadian delights, and still manages to talk
diplomatically!

A JOURNEY TO ARCADIA

Arcadia is a computer moderated PBM wargame with strong
fantasy and roleplaying features. Run by Jade Games on an Atari ST,
Arcadia’s flexible software can hold up to 30 players who
roleplay as tribe leaders in the land of Arcadia.

At the start of the game, you receive a large wall map of the Arcadian
landscape. You must design your character and your tribe, and then choose your
preferred starting place from any of the map’s 1575 locations. Here the
GMs will place your home city, which you must use and defend. The aim is to
use diplomacy and your armies to capture the other players’ cities, as
well as the non player cities. No easy task, believe me!

ROCS

Existing in the game environment are 90 player armies (three per
player), 30 player cities, several computer-controlled cities, many
computer-controlled characters and armies (to befriend, if you can trust
them!), wozums (friendly but rare birds used for spying and scouting), and the
Rocs. Hmmm, the Rocs. Rocs are not very nice birds at all. Rocs are dim. Rocs
are mean. Rocs read BANG. And when Rocs are hungry, Rocs eat
wozums.

MAGIC

Magic exists in Arcadia in the form of ancient spells located in
secret places about the land. Magic is a mysterious feature: it is very
dangerous, powerful and rare. So be warned.

COMBAT

Being a fantasy wargame, combat is a major feature of
Arcadia. Combat resolution is no simple task since the GM takes
several things into account, such as your army design, magic and the
season.

The army movement system is neat and efficient, allowing your armies to make
detailed manoeuvres during any one turn. This makes multi-army battles very
tactical indeed.

TRADE

As in most good PBM games, the clever use of trade can
strengthen your armies and it can also help you gain alliances. If you make a
weaker player than yourself reliant upon you for food, then there is little
immediate danger of him suddenly stabbing you in the back. Trading is done by
using your armies, which makes them rather handy.

CHEAP AT THE PRICE

Arcadia is a fairly low-priced PBM game to play and is
proving quite popular in the UK. The startup package is very good by PBM
standards and the game itself is great value: a Freepost address (no stamps
needed for UK players), long printouts (later in the game being as long as 20
A4 sheets or more), and no hidden costs!

The four GMs of Jade Games are real enthusiasts who appears at many of the
British FRP Games Days with their PBM and FRP service offerings. They ensure
that Arcadia is a well run, fast moving and well thought out game
which encourages diplomacy as well as strong tactics. If you are thinking of
joining another PBM game, why not try it?

A startup in Arcadia costs £5.00, but CRASH readers who send
Jade Games the voucher printed on this page can startup for only £3.50.
This fee includes the rulebook, first move, poster, a 20x30 wall map, and two
free turns. Turns cost £1.50 (including Freepost) thereafter. Write to
Jade Games to take advantage of this offer.

PBM CONVENTION!

Yes, folks, its here again (cue fanfare): the British PBM
Convention. Loyal CRASH readers will remember that back in February of this
year, John ‘where’s the bar?’ Minson visited the First
British PBM Convention in the Socialist Republic of Islington to learn all
about the extraordinary world of Play By Mail gaming.

Mike McGarry has just dropped me a line to inform us all of the Second
British PBM Convention, to be held at the Porchester Hall, London WE2 (near
Paddington Station) on Saturday February 7, 1987. All of the major, and most of
the minor, PBM companies will be there to chat with their punters, and other
features will include demonstration games, contact boards and — yes, John
— a bar.

The last convention was a great day out for PBMers young and old and I am
certain that this will be just as enjoyable — I hope to see you
there!